The pop star lends her fiery charm to Karl Lagerfeld's Coco Cocoon, an understated new collection of featherweight quilted handbags and travel accessories for Chanel

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Karl Lagerfeld knows a thing or two about added value. Famous for his irreverent taste as well as his impeccable timing, the maestro of pop fashion always has been the first to anoint the next It band, actor, or model. So no surprise that he plucks pop star Lily Allen to be the face of his new line of Coco Cocoon bags just as she makes headlines for reportedly quitting her day job to become an actress and—you guessed it—promote her own fashion and jewelry lines: Lily Loves and Lily Allen.

Allen, known for her in-your-face lyrics and wild-child trustafarian ways (Dad is Welsh singer and comedian Keith Allen), is slated to star in Neil LaBute's new West End production of Reasons to Be Pretty in 2010. While she made headlines when she announced several months ago that she'd had enough of recording—"struggling and feeling old" is how the 24-year-old described her state of mind after flogging her second album, It's Not Me, It's You—she is downright enthusiastic about her new theatrical gig. She says the theme of LaBute's play, the damaging cult of beauty, is "close to her heart" and, to hone her second craft, has signed up for private lessons with a tutor from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

But "F--k You" fans, do not despair. Despite having shut down her antipiracy blog and expressing a desire to "move to a farm and raise chickens," Allen may just be on a self-imposed furlough from music. Her Alright, Still was an impressive debut, what with her proletariat-friendly decision to post some of the best tracks from the album on MySpace and the fresh assertiveness and humor of her lyrics. (What's not to like about these lines from the you-done-me-wrong song "Smile"? "Now you're calling me up on the phone/ So you can have a little whine and a moan.../ [W]hen I see you cry/ It makes me smile/ Yeah, it makes me smile.") And when Allen made a surprise appearance at Chanel's spring 2010 show in October, rising out of the set on a platform festooned with hay bales (reflecting Lagerfeld's chic rustique theme), she was in her element. Singing "Not Fair" and bopping about the runway, she looked genuinely happy, as did the audience, including Prince, who gave her a robust round of applause.

So calling it quits may just be Allen's first step toward relaunching her career following the less than stellar sales of her second album. (She would not be the first to choose such a strategy.) In the meantime, there is always fashion and the theater!

Speaking of which, maybe Lagerfeld had a hand in Allen's career change. He certainly knows how to make girls look pretty. Then, too, Allen is a regular at Chanel shows in Paris, and what Cocophile can resist the Kaiser when he comes calling, asking to deploy her as the face for the brand? "I love Lily's humor, her cheekiness, her talent," Lagerfeld enthuses, "her little upturned nose, and her perfect décolletage."

Of course, he also loves that Allen loves Chanel, particularly the inside-out quilt that is at the heart of this new collection of bags. Nylon totes, top handles, trolleys, and duffels—the featherweight carryalls look like puffer coats inspired by the Michelin Man, or maybe the billowy Stay Puft character in Ghostbusters. The overblown padding is sans the obvious details, like the chain-and-leather woven strap, making it perfect for those who chafe at being labeled (of whom the metamorphosing Allen surely is one).

If the supersize totes don't suit, there are also wallets, toiletry cases, and key pouches. All that's missing is a sleeping bag and car cover. But when you're selling such smarty-pants chic in an economic era when less is more, even Karl knows that nobody wants excess baggage. Lily, are you listening? Chanel's Coco Cocoon gives you all the right reasons to smile and no reason to fear losing your street cred, whether you're acting, singing, or chasing chickens in the backyard.